My oncologist has held back 2 of my chemotherapy medications this round in hopes of calming down my symptoms. During my 4th round of chemo, I only had about 5 good days of reprieve, which is down from the 10 days or so I’ve previously had. However, I’ve known from the warnings he gave me at the start that they would get progressively more difficult from start to finish. 

Last weekend I enjoyed time outside with Bryanna when we go to go to Mulberry Lane Farms to play with all the baby animals - this place is so good for me and my wellbeing. Bree and I love it there. Then we did a little necessary shopping for her at Kohl’s. I don’t often get downtime with Bree; between me not feeling well and her extremely busy schedule, it’s hard to carve out that time, but we did it! 

All of our kids finish school this week, so Chris and I are taking them all for a celebratory lunch this Friday. Looking forward to celebrating this win with all of them. 

The planning for the girls’ grad parties is going so well. I’ve been working with my Mom to execute the final details, and it’s nice to see everything falling into place. By the grace of God, the dates chosen for the girls’ graduation dates and grad parties (which were both chosen well before my diagnosis) are falling to into place perfectly with my treatment schedule so I should be feeling well for all of their events. 

I’ve had some heart issues come up, which I’ve never had before. This is part of why they’re holding back on some of my chemo medications these next couple of rounds. Chemo can be damaging to the heart, but my oncologist told me this is typically temporary and should resolve once treatment ends. It sounds to me as though the heart is not pumping as regularly and strongly as it usually is. I’ve been getting notifications that my resting heart rate is higher than normal on my AppleWatch. My doctor and an Echocardiogram confirmed this to be true, so they’re pulling back on the medications to AVOID damage to the heart. There doesn’t appear to be damage YET, but we’re trying to avoid it. 

Chris is working a few nights here and there, but he’s mostly back to days for the season now, which our family is super excited about. My Mom is coming to stay with me during “chemo ick” week next week. She’ll come each day from 9am-4pm to help me execute my plan of getting outside each day only if it’s for 20-30 minutes, making sure I eat small snacks throughout the day (helps with maintaining stamina and avoiding the nausea), allowing me shorter naps, working for at least an hour a day, and helping as a check-in point for Kaeden throughout the day since he’ll be done with school and more active outside in the world with friends and such. I’m hoping between the change in medications and my Mom being willing to help, this round will go better. Fingers crossed. 

My magnesium and potassium are critically low, so trying to get those back up and running in normal ranges, which will help some of the symptoms as well. We’re nearing the end of chemo and I am thrilled. 

They’re looking at my double mastectomy surgery being scheduled for early to mid-July. That’s expected to be a 7 week recovery or so. Then we’ll be on to 30 rounds of radiation which equates to 5 days per week for 6 weeks. Non-invasive, but similar to a sunburn and will be in my armpit area to target the lymph nodes. I don’t think I’ve ever had a sunburned armpit before, so we’ll see what that’s like!

I continue to be amazed at the support Chris and I receive from our friends, family, and community. It’s like nothing I’ve ever experienced before and it feels like magic. Pure magic. Your words of wisdom and support, financial support, car rides, and meals to feed our family when I’m having a rough week are so appreciated. I’m excited and looking forward to being in a position to give back in so many ways people have given to us once I’m feeling back to myself. Please pray for wellness and strength in the weeks ahead in this cycle of treatment.  I don’t want to miss a single thing as our girls finish out the days of their high school lives and prepare for college. 

Love you, friends!

Stacey